Last month, the esteemed journal Science learned it was punked by Korean stem-cell researcher Hwang Woo-suk, two of whose articles were "unconditionally retracted" by the journal when it was learned that his "breakthroughs" were in fact pure fiction.

Now comes "[a] Norwegian cancer researcher [who] has admitted fabricating data published in a renowned international medical journal, officials in Norway said Saturday." [AP/MyWay] The strategy director of Norway's Comprehensive Cancer Center states: "'All of it was fabricated. It was not manipulation of real data - it was just complete fabrication.'" The journal (Lancet) in which the article was published in October 2005 has not yet responded to the story. If the article in question is "Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and the risk of oral cancer: a nested case-control study" (abstract) [The Lancet 2005; 366:1359-1366], there are 14 co-authors of this piece, including researchers from M.D. Anderson and Weill Medical College of Cornell University. This is going to get very messy. [tm]